46Community Searcy is a town with an array of coffee shops and a surprisingly deep history of coffee, particularly within the Harding community. Before the idea of coffee shops was accepted as a cultural norm, getting a cup of coffee meant sitting down inside a diner and ordering. Over time, as interest in drinking coffee grew, so did the demand for coffee shops. They rapidly arose in culture and populated towns all over America, and Searcy was no exception. Among various chain stores, by 2023 Searcy had seven local coffee shops and its own roastery. The Wolf Coffee Company provided artisan roasting, as well as a subscription to home-delivered coffee packages. As for coffee shops, Searcy offered a variety of options. Midnight Oil, which held a place in the hearts of locals since it was established, provided fellowship over coffee and an overt purpose to serve communities– as did shops such as Imago Dei. Mr. Postman and its sister shop Perk and Post created a variety of services, most notably the chance to order a cup of coffee while you sent out your mail. Stu’s Brew, a drive-though based shop, offered convenience without sacrificing quality. Alongside their coffee, shops like Cream and Sugar, Soda Jerk and Warehouse 4 offered sweets and baked goods. With dedicated and intentional local coffee shops, people in Searcy were never lacking a good cup of coffee or a place to gather. The Harding community always has seemed to place importance on coffee culture and all it entailed: community and appreciation of people over the coffee itself. This was exemplified in 2009 when Dr. Pat Garner was asked to teach an intersession course over the origin and diffusion of coffee. As coffee culture grew, this course placed an emphasis on understanding the significance of historical and cultural aspects of coffee and people: “We went to the places where coffee began, which would be Ethiopia,” Garner said. “We went to Oman, which borders Yemen, and then we went on to Istanbul … And we chose to end our trip in Paris.” He explained the significance coffee’s diffusion had on cultures. As it diffused from Ethiopia across the Red Sea to Yemen and Oman, then to Cairo or Istanbul, it entered the capital of Europe, which led to the significant role coffee shops played in gathering people. In modern culture, the emergence of coffee shops began to drastically increase; however, coffee culture was still pervasive before the wide-spread popularity of coffee shops grew. Garner shared his experience of simply drinking coffee where he could find it when he attended graduate school: “We would have these long classes, like from 7 to 10 at night, and there would always be a coffee pot – or Saturday mornings for three hours we would have class, and there would always be coffee,” Garner said. Harding students were not left entirely destitute before the overly popular emergence of coffee shops. In 1978 the Student Association (SA) took the initiative to regularly host events called coffeehouses, where they organized entertainment and served coffee. SA coffeehouses were created to give students a break from daily studies and university life and to provide them with a chance to engage in community. The SA hosted the first coffeehouse in the newly built Hammon Student Center. Admission was free, and student musicians performed alongside Pat Daisy, a country-pop star from Nashville. Admission to events wasn’t always free. In 1976 student musicians performed for a coffeehouse and entry was 25 cents. There was, however, complimentary sodas and donuts. Additionally, the events were often themed and decorated, and sources of entertainment weren’t only live music. For one Halloween, the SA hosted a horror themed coffeehouse where students enjoyed food and scary movies. By the ’90s, there was a Starbucks on campus, but the SA wanted to provide students with more options. They aimed to create a place on campus where students could study, relax and spend time with one another. They Stopping on his walk along the road in Gondar May 13, senior Alan Elrod learns how the native Ethiopians make pottery. Right behind was the women’s co-op building where single mothers were able to work and learn a craft. Reprinted From Petit Jean 2010-2011 Standing at the edge of a mountain May 14, students overlook Simien Mountains National Park in Ethiopia. The students camped in these mountains overnight at an altitude of 10,700. Reprinted From Petit Jean 2010-2011 Students work together in Starbucks in 2018. Starbucks has become a campus fixture ever since it was opened as a part of the Legacy addition. Photo courtesy of Jeff Montgomery Following the trail of coffee from Ethiopia to the Harding community.
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